The Thinning Line Between
by charzard28
Summary: Yumi Ishiyama has been 'stolen' from Ulrich Stern for a total number of three times... By none other than William Dunbar. Both boys loves Yumi. But when William confesses to Yumi, before Ulrich does, the latter snaps. Ulrich, heartbroken, now does the unimaginable. What is he going to do? Will his love for Yumi continue to go on? Will William win Yumi instead? Read more to find out
1. The worst Valentine

_**Note: This fanfiction takes place at around Season 2 to 3 of the show, where Xana hasn't posess William yet.**_

* * *

_**~Ulrich's POV~  
**_  
"William…" My fist was clenched, "Damn you…" I muttered to myself. Broken twigs fell onto the grass. I stared at the night sky. Gigantic trees loomed ahead, casting ominous shadows. The park was silent. No one was there, except for me. It was nine at night and I should be in bed. It should be a joyous day for me, for everyone. But it wasn't. Soon, thoughts began to fill my mind. All were questions, but there were no answers.  
"Hey Ulrich! It's bed time! Come on!" I peered behind my shoulder. It was Odd. "Hey buddy, are you alright? Don't tell me you're sulking again… Let me cheer you up with one of my jokes!"  
"Odd, just leave me alone," I stood up and walked towards the dormitory building.

_**~Odd's POV~**_

I sighed. Ulrich, I wonder what's happening in his mind. He seems to have trouble opening up to people. I watched in silent as Ulrich walked towards the dorms. I shrugged. Whatever, just let him be.  
"Race you there!" I shouted to Ulrich as I dashed towards the building, hoping that it would lift his spirit up a little. But I guess it failed…

_**~Ulrich's POV~**_

"Good night Ulrich. Good night Kiwi, my little dog,"

The lights flickered off. I stared at the ceiling. All I could see was darkness. Then, a question came into my mind. _Darkness… Is that my fate?_

_No… Never._ I closed my eyes and slowly drifted into a deep sleep.

**_-Flashback-_**

"_Yumi.. Uh…" I stared into Yumi's mesmerising eyes. She looked beautiful. My heart pounded wildly. _

"_Yes, Ulrich?" _

_I rubbed the back of my neck. My face was steaming hot. I could feel that I was blushing. _

"_Well, I uh… I got this for-"_

"_Yumi!" A voice called out._

_I spun around and saw no other than William Dunbar running towards us. _

"_Remember our date?" William said with a wink. _

"_Oh! The date… I almost forgotten!" Yumi replied. It was not long after they had started a conversation. William's chuckles and Yumi's giggles filled the area. They were so into the conversation that they forgotten that I was standing right behind them! It was as if I was not there! _

_I closed my eyes shut. Trying to detach myself from this world, just for a moment. Even though my eyes were closed, I could picture William making Yumi laugh._

_My eyes snapped open. I started to back away. Step by step, I went further from them. They did not notice me walking away. Then, I dashed far away from them. My anger rose with each step I took. I wasn't angry at myself. I was angry at William… __**William Dunbar**__!_

_He had 'stolen' Yumi from me… Not once… But __**thrice**__!_

* * *

**_This is my first time writing a fanfic, so please bear with my errors. I'm just a newbie._**


	2. Just like the movie

_**~Normal POV~**_

Yumi and William had just returned from their date. As William accompanied Yumi back home, they chatted about the movie they had just seen.

"I don't get why the female lead had chosen the male lead. He didn't even confess to her, unlike the other one. She should choose the one who expressed the most love to her, which is the so called 'antagonist'. What do you think, Yumi?" William asked, tapping his chin while wrecking his brain to think of an answer himself.

"Well…" Yumi paused as she thought of an answer, "It doesn't matter who she chose, as long as they are happy together."

"Then what about the other guy? Wouldn't he be sad to lose the girl?" They were close to reaching Yumi's house; it was just a few meters away.

"Thanks for the movie, William. See you tomorrow," Yumi bowed to William, just like how Japanese do when they thank their friends. After all, she's Japanese herself. Yumi unlocked her gate and waved goodbye.

"Bye Yumi," William waved and walked back to Kadic. Yumi stood at her front door, looking at the back view of William. Suddenly, she recalled a distant memory.

_**-Flashback-**_

_It was just after Team Lyoko (Jeremie, Aelita, Yumi, Ulrich and Odd) deactivated a tower. They bid farewell to Yumi as the other four watched Yumi run home. _

"_Hey Ulrich, go after Yumi and tell her that you like her," Odd suggested to Ulrich. Ulrich pondered for a moment, and nodded his head. He was about to make a dash to Yumi's house but he held back._

"_What about Jim? What if he finds out that I'm not around?" _

"_Don't worry, we'll make it up for you," Aelita gave Ulrich a thumbs up sign. Jeremie nodded his head in approval and Ulrich sprinted to Yumi's house._

_It was not long after he reached his destination. He turned around the corner and saw… William standing in front of Yumi. Their heads were close to each other, as if they were about to kiss. _

_Ulrich could not stand to watch anymore, he turned around and ran back to where he knew was 'home' – Kadic Academy. _

"_Uh…" Yumi ducked under William's arm, "I got to go," and she disappeared into her house. Leaving the confused William standing outside her house gate._

_The next day, she received a question from Odd. He asked, "So how was it yesterday? What did Ulrich said to you?"_

_That sentence made Yumi recall everything. Oh no… Ulrich's there last night, Yumi thought to herself as she rubbed her temples. Ulrich had imagined what he had seen. He thought that William kissed Yumi! After that was a whole lot of mess…_

_**-End flashback-**_

Yumi sat on her bed as she remembered the plotline of the movie she had watched. It was about a girl facing difficulties choosing between two boys. One was a boy the same age as her, the other a year younger. Both boys took turns being jealous of each other. But the older boy had the upper hand; being the more mature one.

_Just like Ulrich and William… _Yumi gazed out of her window. The streets were dotted with lamp poles, with an occasional passing by of vehicles.

And the girl… Just like_ Yumi_.

She knew how the girl felt when facing that difficulty. She knew that one of the boys would be heartbroken if the girl rejected him and goes for the other. That was why she did not answer William's final question.

She could relate her present life to the movie. Two boys played a major role. _Ulrich and William. _She could not bear to lose either one of them. But she knew that in the future, she had to choose one.

But which _one_?


	3. To tell the truth

_**~Ulrich's POV~**_

_Do you still have any feelings left for me, Yumi? _ I looked down at my hands. Jim was babbling about the rules for the new sport we're playing for gym class. But I wasn't paying attention; I was too distracted by what I saw yesterday. That incident kept on lingering in my mind…

"Stern! Demonstrate what I just said!" Jim called out to me. I snapped out of my trance and blinked at him. "See, class? That's what you get for not paying attention!"

I would normally enjoy gym class, but I dreaded today's…

An hour of torture finally passed, it was lunch time.

"Mmm hmmm! I can smell lunch from here! Bean sprouts and stew!" Odd rubbed his tummy as he licked his lips. "Hey Ulrich, what's on your mind?" Odd placed his arm on my shoulder and jabbed me on my stomach playfully. I looked up from the ground, shocked, and stopped walking.

"Is it Yumiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiii?" Odd laughed and shook me teasingly.

"No, no. None of that sort," I lied.

"Come on, tell me. Tell me, tell me, tell me," Odd whined. I tried to ignore him but Odd kept on pestering me. After two minutes of Odd's non-stop whining, I gave in to him.

"Alright.. I'll tell you while we eat, okay?"

**~Odd's POV~**

I dashed towards the counter and swiftly picked up the tray. Rosa smiled at me and gave me my serving.

"Hey, Rosa, you look beautiful today," I complimented.

"Really? Thank you, Odd," Rosa replied as she gave me another bowl of stew.

"Yeah!" I lifted the tray and walked to our usual table. Einstein and Aelita could not go for lunch as they were working on some computer thingy. They should take a break and chill. I mean, why work so hard?

Not long after I've sat down, Ulrich came to join me.

"So, tell me, what's in your mind?"

"Remember that day, Odd?" Ulrich started.

"What day? Come on, Ulrich, just cut to the chase," I said, taking another bite of my food. It's delicious today.

"That day.. The day after we deactivated the tower. You guys told me to chase after Yumi… But…"

"But what?"

"I saw.. I saw William." Ulrich paused.

I stopped eating and looked at him.

"I saw William kiss Yumi.. And there's another time.. It was the field trip. I wanted to ask Yumi to be my partner… But William… Got her instead.. And recently…" Ulrich blurted out.

**~Ulrich's POV~  
**  
My heart raced. There's this feeling inside of my heart. I can't explain it, but it's… it's so… _painful_. I clenched my fist and stared at my food for a while.

"Okay, let me guess. William took your valentine yesterday?" Odd guessed.

I remained silent and continued to stare at my food. Odd laughed and took another bite of his food.

"Oh Ulrich. Look at me, I don't even have a _girlfriend_!" Odd joked.

"No! She's not my… girlfriend!" I looked away from Odd, "She's just a friend, that's all!" I could feel my face getting hotter.

"Look at you, you're as red as a tomato!" Odd laughed and teased me.

I look out of the cafeteria window.

"To tell the truth, I don't want us to be _just friends_…"

-  
**I aplogise for not updating for such a LOOOOOONG time. I was busy with my exams for the past month. Sorry guys! But I'll be updating very frequently now as I've got a lot of time in my hands!**


	4. At least, I have Yumi at my side

Hey guys! As you might notice in the later chapters, I would be using Ulrich's POV quite a lot as this story mainly focuses on him.

* * *

_Three days later…._

**~Normal POV~**

The 8th Grade students and the 7th Grade students were combined into a class for Gym lesson. Their game for the day was floorball. There were forty students in total, twenty from each grade, and they were divided into groups of five.

"Alright. You guys know the rules, don't you? So we'll start the game now. Theo's and William's group, go to the center of the court and discuss your group's strategy for a minute." Jim commanded.

**~Ulrich's POV~**

_Great. I'm up against William, _I thought as I picked up my floorball stick.  
William's grouped with three other boys and a girl from his class… While I'm grouped with Jeremie, Aelita, Theo and not to mention... Sissi.

Being the leader of our group, Theo gave each of us a position. Jeremie and Aelita was the defender, while Theo and I was the striker. And… Sissi was the goal keeper, which she was clearly unpleased of.

"Why can't I be the _striker_? I **want** to be with Ulrich! Why must _you_ be the one with him! Hmph! I **demand** you to change the roles **now**!" Sissi stomped around and shouted with her annoying voice.

"No, no… It's because you need to be fast and strong to be the-" Theo tried to explain but was cut short.

"So you're implying that _I'm_** slow **and **weak**?!" Sissi retorted.

And thus, Theo had no choice but to allow her to be the striker.  
I shook my head and sighed. How annoying Sissi can be! She's not just a leech, but a brat as well!

Jim blew his whistle and the match commenced.

**~Normal POV~  
**  
Sissi and William stood facing each other, with their floorball sticks outstretched. The ball was directly between them. They hit their sticks together three times and…

"Go!" William got the upper hand and struck the ball with practiced ease. The ball shot past Sissi, much to her surprise.

William's teammates ran towards the ball, each trying to get the ball into the opponent's net.

"Ulrich! Tag William! Jeremie, Aelita! Defend!" Theo shouted instructions. His vision then drifted to Sissi, who was uselessly standing rooted to the ground, at where the match started a minute ago. "Sissi! Don't just stand there! Help us!" But Sissi just ignored Theo and continued standing there.

William has gotten the ball and was skillfully pushing the ball towards the goal. Ulrich, who was running beside him, tried in vain to snatch the ball.

"What are you, a chicken? Can't catch the ball?" William taunted Ulrich. Ulrich glared at him for a second and struck William's stick. But William foresaw that move and swung his stick. The ball flew across the court and went into the goal.

"You have to do better than that, Ulrich _dear_. Hahaha," William mimicked Sissi's voice and taunted him.

"You're one to talk, spiderman," Ulrich replied, not looking at William.

"At least, I have _Yumi_ at _my_side,"

Ulrich stopped in his tracks and looked at Yumi, then back at William.

_That's it. _Ulrich flared up.

**~Odd's POV~  
**  
"Drats! Ulrich's team lost! Luckily he still has another round to decide the victor," I pounded my fist onto my palm as I talked to Yumi.

"Sissi's just plain stupid, she doesn't even do anything! And.. Oh no!" Yumi exclaimed as she rushed to the court.

"Huh?" Dumbfounded, I looked up… and saw Ulrich and William fighting.

**~Ulrich's POV~**

"You…" I growled as I swung my floorball stick at William. William dodged aside and kicked me in my stomach, causing me to fall backwards. My floorball stick skidded a few meters away.

I winced in pain as I clutched my stomach in agony. _Curse you, William… _Without warning, I leapt up and tackled William. We exchanged punches and both drew some blood.

"Hey! What's wrong with you?!" William shouted as he tried pushing me off. I gave no reply and continued to punch him, which I failed to do so. And that, caused me to become even angrier.

"Let go of me, Stern!"

I ignored him and continued to wrestle him. Abruptly, I saw a blur of red coming towards me. It was so sudden that I had no time to react. After that, all I felt was pain…

* * *

**Please don't be dirty minded cause I know some of you are! The 'stick' means the **_**floorball**_** stick, and not that stick! Haha.. I'm kind of dirty minded as well, so I thought of that… But please don't be, okay? And as for the floorball part, I know I didn't emphasize that much on it as I don't really know much of that sport. But since I really like playing that sport in school, I might as well write about it. **


	5. What have I been thinking?

**~Normal POV~  
**  
"Stern! Dunbar! What do you think you're doing?" Jim shouted as he rushed over to the two boys. He looked down at Ulrich, who was holding his head in pain.

"Dunbar! You're getting into serious trouble! What have you done?!"

"It's not my fault, Jim, I swear. Ulrich started it first!"

**~Ulrich's POV~**

_I_ started it first, huh. Yeah right! You're the one who provoked me!

Using all of my strength left, I groaned as I staggered to my feet. _This is not the time to be weak… _I clenched my fist and gritted my teeth. I couldn't feel any pain that time, all I felt was numbness. Blood trickled down my forehead as I walked towards William.

All the hate I've felt for him was about to explode into reality. I wanted to kill him so _badly_. I wanted to watch him _suffer_.

"Stern! Are you mad or what?! Della Robbia! Get hold of him and bring him to the infirmary now!" Jim ordered.

_Just a few more steps… And I can show William-_

Odd's voice brought me back to reality. Instantly, I looked at his direction. Then, I realized what I've been thinking. I shook my head and gasped. _What have I been thinking? God, no… I'm out of my mind! _I stopped walking and stood there, dumbfounded. Odd sighed as he tugged at my hand.__

"Come Ulrich, let's go…"

**~Yumi's POV~  
**  
I have never seen him like that before… Something's wrong about him… He's became very aggressive these days…

I watched in silence as Odd and Ulrich walked out of the court. I glanced at William and shot him a quizzical look. William just gave a shrug and like the rest of the class, continued to stare at Ulrich.

I don't know the answer _yet_, but I will find it out.

**~Normal POV~**

"You're lucky that the injury is not major. Although you've lost quite an amount of blood, you should be able to recover within a week. I'll wrap a bandage around your forehead to stop the bleeding," Yolanda said in a soothing voice as she stood up and reached for the bandage.

Odd was seated at the corner of the infirmary, watching Ulrich with concerned eyes. He didn't know what to think about. He was just worried about his best friend's health. Odd now knew that Ulrich wasn't joking about what he had told him three days ago…

"All done. Odd, you can take Ulrich back to his room now,"

Interrupted from his train of thoughts, Odd nodded and hurriedly brought Ulrich back to their dorm room.

-  
_**The next day…**___

Both William and Ulrich were seated at Mr. Delmas's office, with an endless avalanche of questions pouring on them.

"It's not the first time the both of you were caught fighting. Look at what you've done, Dunbar," Mr. Delmas pointed at Ulrich's injury.

"But I-"

"I don't care what your reason is, but strictly _**no**_ fighting is allowed in this school. Both of you have your wrongs. And for punishment, the two of you will receive two days of detention. Detention starts now. Go to the library and read a book each, do you understand?"

"Yes…" William and Ulrich mumbled as they got up and proceeded to the library.

At the library, the two boys ignored each other and they both sat at each end of the table. But it was not long until…

"Why didn't you tell Mr. Delmas the truth?" William started.

"No, why didn't _you,"_ Ulrich shot back, looking up from his book.

"What _me_? You're the one who attacked first,"

"Well, yeah. But you're the one who _started_ all this,"

"Look, I'm not giving in just because you're injured," William glared at Ulrich.

"Neither am I, Dumb-dumb," Ulrich placed his book down and returned William his glare.

"Trying to be funny, huh. Well you're a….."

The rest of the conversation was just a childish verbal fight.


	6. It's because of me and William,isn't it?

**~Normal POV~  
**

"Hey Jeremie, would you mind lending me the notes that you've copied in class?" Ulrich asked.

"I don't see why not.. But it's weird that you're not paying any attention in class, I mean, you _always_do," Jeremie said as he passed Ulrich his notes.

"Ulrich became broke, that's why he's not paying attention! Get it? Paying- Attention! Hahaha!" Odd joked.

"Very funny, Odd," Ulrich rolled his eyes at his friend's lame joke. But he has to admit it, even though Odd's kind of annoying at time, he never fails to cheer him up. Well, _almost_, that is.

"XANA hasn't activated a tower yet? Man! I'm bored!" Odd exclaimed, "It's been four days and-" Coincidently, Jeremie's laptop began to beep.

"Speak of the devil, Odd," Aelita winked at Odd as Odd pumped his fist in the air. Odd has been itching to go to Lyoko ever since the last battle; he wanted to feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins, especially when he destroys a monster.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Odd ran ahead of his friends, "Last one there is a rotten egg!" Odd shouted. Jeremie picked up his bag and ran over. Just as Ulrich was about to make a dash, Aelita stopped him.

"You're not calling Yumi?" Aelita raised her eyebrows.

"Yes.. I mean no…" Ulrich fiddled with his mobile phone in his pocket. _Should I call or not? No, she __**must**__ be with that jerk now… But what if we need her assistance? _

Aelita looked at Ulrich's troubled expression and gave him a pat on his shoulder.

"I'll call Yumi then," She stated and the both of them ran off towards the factory.

"Virtualization!"

Odd, Aelita and Ulrich landed on the Mountain Sector. They were told to wait for Yumi before going on ahead to deactivate the tower.

"No signs of XANA attacking Earth?" Aelita asked Jeremie.

"Nope, no signs of it. Oh, Yumi's here," Jeremie greeted Yumi and began starting up the virtualization process.

After a few seconds, the Lyoko Warriors set off to the activated tower.

-

"Ahh!" Odd shouted as he was devirtualized.

Ulrich gritted his teeth and held his saber in his left hand, "Supersprint!"  
Indeed, Lyoko battles are getting progressively harder to win. XANA was getting stronger and stronger each day. But strangely, today's battle was easier than the previous few. It was as if XANA was storing up his power for a big attack.. Ulrich had a bad feeling about that, but still kept his composure and began fighting off the monsters.

Yumi was protecting Aelita from two Blocks while Ulrich was in combat with three Krabes.

"Stay close to me, Aelita," Yumi began focusing on a Block. When she was done, she lifted the block from the ground with her telekinesis and flung the block to a Krabe. Upon impact, the two monsters exploded.

Swinging his saber with both hands, Ulrich blocked the attacks from the Krabes. Suddenly, he got hit in the stomach by a laser.

"Careful, Ulrich! Only ten life points left!" Jeremie exclaimed, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead.

"Easy for you to say!" Ulrich replied as he killed a Krabe. Only two Krabes and a Block left…

"Triplicate!" Ulrich and his clones began attacking the remaining monsters and in no time, they were destroyed.

"Good job! Now head for the tower before XANA sends in more monsters!" Jeremie's voice boomed across the mountain sector. Aelita nodded and ran inside the tower, leaving Ulrich and Yumi behind.

There was an awkward silence before Yumi approached Ulrich.

"Um.. Ulrich.. There's something I want to ask you about,"

"What is it?"

"It's about ," Yumi paused, "You… I've noticed that you've been quite moody these days, and I want to find out why,"

Ulrich remained silent. He didn't feel like answering that question.

"It's because of me and William, isn't it?" Yumi said.

Ulrich turned and stared at Yumi for a while, then turned away. Still, no words came out from his lips.

Yumi sighed and shook her head. This is what she find about Ulrich funny. Whenever he sees Yumi with any boy of age 15 to 18, that is not Odd or Jeremie, he gets jealous.

Yumi was about to say something, but Jeremie beat her to it.

"Ok, I'll bring you guys back in,"


	7. Monday, it is

_Hi! I would appreciate it if you guys can review my story so that I know where I can improve on or add some interesting plots into the story if you give any suggestions! Thanks!_

* * *

~Normal POV~

"Another day is gone again!" Odd sighed. The Lyoko warriors were walking back to the academy after spending an hour at the Factory chatting and discussing about XANA and stuffs.

Ulrich was walking alone at the back of the group, with an endless train of thoughts in his mind. He was wrecking his brain whether or not to confess to Yumi about his feelings. After some serious thinking, he decided to tell. Ulrich slowly approached Yumi, each step made his heart skip. Yumi was right in front of him. Ulrich reached out, and tapped Yumi's shoulder.

"Uh.. Yumi, can we talk for a while?"

"Yes sure. What about it?" Yumi turned around and faced Ulrich. The others went on ahead, oblivious that the two of them stopped. The forest was eerily quiet, only the sound of crickets could be heard. Ulrich's heart thumped wildly against his chest. _This is a once in a lifetime chance… Don't' mess this up, Ulrich. _He told himself.

"Yumi… I-" Suddenly, Yumi's phone chimed.

"Oh no! My parents are calling.. They are going to be so mad when I reach home!" Yumi literally shouted before answering the call.

_Great timing. _Ulrich looked and the grass and thought to himself. It's _always _like this. Every time he wanted to confess to Yumi, something would happen. Just like last time, when Odd just jumped in and ruin the moment! And that time… Where _William_… Ulrich shook his head. No. He didn't want to recall that damn memory. But that day kept on repeating in his mind…

_**Flash!**_

William leaned forward, with his hand placed on one side of Yumi's head. He gently pushed Yumi towards him. Their heads almost touched each other's…

Ulrich could not stand to watch anymore. He knew exactly what would happen. A kiss. He squeezed his eyes shut and began backing off. Ulrich took one last glance at the duo before running back to Kadic.

_Ulrich clenched his fist and gritted his teeth. Yumi… Why? He questioned himself. But somehow, he knew that it wasn't Yumi's fault. It was __**William's**__. He knew that William __**forced **__Yumi. He knew that it was __**against**__Yumi's will. But, how can he be so sure? What if they didn't really kiss? What if… There were so many questions to be answered…_

"Ulrich?" Yumi shook him.

"Huh what?" Ulrich was unaware of his surroundings.

"You were day dreaming just now. So, what did you want to tell me?"

"Uh…" Ulrich pondered for a moment and decided not to tell at this time. He could clearly see that Yumi was anxious to return home and was about to make a mad dash for it. "Sorry.. I, uh.. Forgotten what I was about to say," Ulrich lied, "I, well, I'll tell you on Monday when I've remembered?"

"Alright then, I got to go. See you!" Yumi shouted to Odd, Jeremie and Aelita who were waiting for Ulrich. They waved goodbye and Yumi waved back. "Goodbye, Ulrich," Yumi said softly.

"Yeah, uh, ciao," Ulrich replied. And with that, Yumi ran off. Ulrich stood there, with his hands in his pockets, watching Yumi's back view. He reconsidered about chasing after Yumi but thought the better of it.

_Monday, it is._


	8. The script

**~Normal POV~  
**  
Ulrich was scribbling furiously onto a paper. His mind was wrecking for things to write. His hands were aching because of writing for an hour straight.

"Hey, what are you writing about?" Odd asked, kicking the paper ball that Ulrich threw on the floor. He leaned forward and glanced at the paper Ulrich was writing on. "Is it a love letter for Yumi? Hahahaha!" Odd snatched the paper and began to read it out loud.

"Yumi, I've always wanted to-"

"Give it back, Odd!" Ulrich leapt up and tackled him.

"Ok, ok," Odd gave up and handed the paper back to Ulrich. Ulrich glared at Odd for a moment before returning back to his seat.

"I'm writing a script," Ulrich revealed.

"A script? A _confession _script?" Odd scratched his head, "Who does that lame thing?"

"Me."

Odd sighed and patted Ulrich on his shoulder.

"That's not the way, good buddy. I, the ladies' man, will teach you the _proper_way,"

"Oh no, Odd. Your longest relationship only lasts for two days!" Ulrich laughed and Odd's face grew red.

"Hmph! That's because the girls don't have good taste. And I don't care! I _will_ teach you _my _way, even if it's the last thing I do!" Odd announced and started to make Ulrich memorise a few sentences. Startled, Ulrich stared at Odd, dumbfounded.

"… And I vow to protect you from XANA until he is defeated…" Ulrich paused and looked at Odd.

"Come on, continue," Odd said while stroking Kiwi.

"Are you sure about this, Odd?" Ulrich asked skeptically.

"I'm hundred percent sure! Trust me, good buddy, in no time, Yumi will be wrapping her arms around you and kissing you until you can't breathe!"

Ulrich sighed, "But Yumi will know that I'm not the one who wrote this… It's not sincere that way.."

"Nah, it's fool proof,"

Left with no choice, Ulrich continued to memorise those sentences. _  
_-

"Are you ready now, Ulrich?" Odd asked. He was getting bored watching Ulrich memorizing the sentences the whole day. Even Ulrich brought the notes to lunch in which that aroused Jeremie's and Aelita's curiousity.

"Yeah, I think," Odd eyes lit up the instant he heard those words. Ulrich took a deep breath and started, "Yumi, ever since we've met, I've fell in love with you. Whenever I look at you, I think that I'm in heaven…" Ulrich paused, "Seriously Odd. That sounds like Yumi kills me whenever I look at her!"

"Shhh! No questioning!"

Ulrich rolled his eyes and continued, "I will always be there when you need me. Just call, and I'll be there in a flash. And I vow to protect you from XANA until he is defeated. Even after he is defeated, I will still protect you, but a million times more… And… Yumi.. I.. love you," Ulrich blushed at the last sentence.

"Perfect! You are ready now, romeo!" Odd gave Ulrich and thumbs up.

"Well, I just hope that you won't humiliate me, Odd..."

"That won't happen. And by the way, you need to decide on a location to where you will tell her that. Hmm…"

"I would prefer the forest, nobody goes there and it's peaceful," Ulrich said.

"The forest it is then!" Odd yawned, "It's twelve already, I'm tired…"

"Yeah, ditto-"

Suddenly, without warning, Odd leapt for the switch, "Lights off!"

"ODD!" Ulrich shouted in the darkness.

* * *

_(__**Author notes**__)  
I don't really know what to write for the confession script. LOL what I wrote was completely random. I think that Odd can actually do a better script than what's in this fanfic. Because I'm not really that romantic, I can't figure out what to write! (Since I'm 12, actually.. –sigh- haha!) Thanks for reading! _


	9. You know, I go crazy about her

**~Ulrich's POV~**

_Alright, I'm going to do this… No sweat. I've rehearsed a lot of times and now I can do this.. But what if she rejects me or doesn't take me seriously? No, that can't happen.. Odd has already said that this was foolproof.. But what if that idiot Odd tricked me or something? No, that can't possibly happen.. ARGH!_

I slapped myself. _Don't think negative, Ulrich!_ I sighed. I had a sleepless night yesterday. I was awake all night, repeating that damn c_onfession script_ over and over again in my mind. This might be the only time that I envy Odd. He slept soundly- No. That isn't the word.. He slept **noisily** the whole night! His snores were an exact duplicate of those of a _dying _whale! And that might just be the reason why I could not sleep… Thank you, Odd Della Robbia!

My confidence was like a roller coaster ride; it goes up and falls back down. Every time I think that I can do it, there will always be another thought that brings me back down… I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that I have low self-esteem, don't you? Well.. You're probably right..

I glanced at my watch. _Two more minutes.._Two more minutes and Yumi will be walking right through that gate.. Odd said that I had to do a dynamic entry, so as to surprise Yumi. Dynamic, as in hiding behind a tree and jumping in front of Yumi when she passes by.. How stupid is that? I'm such a fool to agree with Odd on that plan.. Man..!

It was not long after Yumi arrived. I took a deep breath and looked around. My heart was pounding wildly and my hands were clammy. And if you're wondering what I'm thinking… Well, this is basically what I'm thinking right now..; s_hit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit…_  
Yeah.. I'm nervous, okay?

I decided to abort Odd's plan on surprising Yumi with the dynamic entry, and instead approach her normally. But as soon as I got out of my hiding place, I heard another voice.. It was a _guy's_voice. I quickly got back to my hiding place.

"Hey Yumi," the voice said.

I peered out from behind the tree, curious of whom that was, but at the same time reminded myself to stay unseen. _Like a ninja!_I chuckled. How funny I can be!

The guy was wearing a black shirt with long red sleeves, combined with a pair of jeans. I could not really make out who that was as the leaves were blocking my view. I did not want to be spotted, so I decided to stay in this position until I think that the time is right to move to a better spot. Until then… I just have to wait.

**~Normal POV~**

"Here, this is for you."

"Why thank you!" Yumi said as she received the gift. "An early morning gift, classy," Yumi stated.

"I figured out that you liked chocolates, white chocolates to be exact."

"Stalker," Yumi punched him playfully.

The boy laughed. There was an awkward silence before the boy said:

"Yumi, there's something I have to tell you," the boy started.

**~Ulrich's POV~**

I decided to shift places now. I don't know why I chose this time as I would normally change after they have left.. I guess its instinct. I tiptoed to behind a tree where it's closer to the pair, so that I could listen and watch them clearly. As I got there, I heard the guy say something. I leaned against the tree, with my back facing them.

"You know, when I fall for a girl, I go crazy about her."  
I couldn't contain my curiosity anymore. I turned around and…

**~Normal POV~**

"I love you."

William leaned forward and kissed Yumi…

* * *

**(Author's notes)**

_Cliffhanger! Oooooohhhhh Things are going to get interesting!  
And I did laugh at the 'shit, shit, shit, shit' part. I added that in for humor, and also because I really think like that in real life when something bad happens or when I'm nervous and stuff. Haha  
I'm sorry that I didn't update for such a long time.. I was kind of busy editing videos, taking care of my pet birds and handling some personal stuff.  
And just to tell you, I have a YouTube channel. Please do subscribe to me and watch my videos. LOL?! I edit Code Lyoko videos, which I've stated on my profile.  
Link to my YouTube channel: user/charzard28?feature=mhee_

Thank you in advance!


	10. Blinded by hatred

**~Normal POV~  
**  
Ulrich snapped.

"What do you think you're doing, William?!" Ulrich snarled as he clenched his fist, his knuckles burned white as he glared at William.

William smirked as he released Yumi, "Too late, Ulrich Stern.. I already won."

Ulrich could not contain it anymore. He leapt towards William and executed a flying kick. Upon impact, William flew backwards and struck a tree. William groaned as he stumbled back up, but failed to do so and instead fall backwards. Seizing the opportunity, Ulrich dashed forward in an attempt to stomp William on his stomach.

"Ulrich, no!" Yumi forcefully tugged Ulrich's arms, preventing him from attacking William, "Get a hold of yourself! What's wrong with you?!"

"Let go of me!" Ulrich struggled.

"I'm alright, Yumi. Don't butt in, this is between _me_ and _Stern_," William was back up on his feet. He took cautious steps towards Yumi and Ulrich as he didn't want to repeat what had happened.

Without warning, Ulrich jabbed Yumi in her stomach and broke free from her grasp. He then charged at William and grabbed him by his collar.

"You stole Yumi from me," Ulrich seethed in anger, "You kissed her. You treated her like she was yours." Ulrich spat out each word with venom. He could feel his hatred and anger rising as each seconds ticked by. He could feel all those hate he had for William waiting to explode into reality.

"You're right, she's_ mine_,"

"Why you.." Ulrich threw a punch but William managed to dodge it.

"Don't listen to him, Ulrich! He's lying! I'm not with him!" Yumi was getting worried as she watched Ulrich attack William.

"Oh yeah? How can I believe you now?! I saw you kiss him. I saw you on a date with him," Ulrich's eyes flashed with hatred.

Yumi was bewildered by Ulrich's reaction. _No.. That's not the Ulrich I know.._Yumi thought to herself. She stared at Ulrich. She was right.. Ulrich has been blinded by hatred.

Ulrich threw another punch but this time, William turned the game around. William dodged aside and pinned Ulrich to a tree.

"Look. If you want to play it like this, then fine. I'm not going to show you any mercy," William glared back at Ulrich.

"No, William, don't! Ulrich's not himself!" Yumi tried to pry Ulrich from William's grip but failed. William was just too strong.

Turning on deaf ears, William ignored Yumi. He lifted Ulrich up, which he knew exactly what was going to 's eyesight wavered and blurred. His strength was slowly sapped away.. _Damn.. How did he know my weakness? _Ulrich was getting paler each moment. He began to breathe harshly. He tried to focus on William's face but to no avail. Darkness seeped into the corners of his eyes. _No.. I can't blackout now… This is not the time! _Ulrich screamed in his head. He tried summoning all his strength, but there were none left…

He fell limp onto the forest floor…

* * *

**(Author's notes)  
**  
_ If you guys don't know, Ulrich's greatest weakness is vertigo (as shown in Episode 44 of Code Lyoko). _


	11. Just wait, William

**~Ulrich's POV~**

I groaned as I open my eyes. The first thing I saw was the white ceiling of my dorm room.. There was no doubt about it. I was defeated.. by _**William**_…  
I lost everything. I lost my only chance. I lost.. _Yumi_.. I remembered that time where William spoke to me.. He said that between our 'race' for Yumi.. I was first in place.. But now.. I guess that William's the champion..  
I sighed. From the start, I knew that I couldn't possibly match up to William. He's so strong and has his love tactics.. While I'm just… A big coward. I don't have the courage to confess my feelings to Yumi, but William did it like it was nothing at all..  
I feel like giving up. I wish that all these didn't happen.. I just wish that.. No.. William already won.. There's no hope left.. I closed my eyes as the silence embraced me..

_I just wish that… Yumi will be with me.._

"_Your wish can be granted_,"

My eyes shot wide open. I leapt up from my bed and scanned the surroundings.. My eyes fell upon.. A spectre..

"XANA.." I muttered.

"_Just join me, and I'll give you anything you want_," The spectre said with a sly smile.

"Dream on, XANA, I will never join you!" I got into a fighting stance, just in case he attacks.

"_I can help you __**destroy **__William_,"  
I paused. _Destroy_ William.. That sounds very tempting.

"_I can give you superhuman powers for you to use on Earth_," The spectre continued, "_You can use it at your own free will to kill him_."  
_After William is gone.. The group will no longer have troubles with him interfering.. Sounds good.. And I can have my sweet revenge at last.  
_  
"Alright then."

The spectre smirked, "I'll activate a tower now…"

* * *

**~Normal POV~  
**Jeremie's laptop started beeping.

"XANA activated a tower," The blond whispered to Odd and Aelita.

"I'll call Yumi and Ulrich," Aelita said.

"Plan one?" Odd asked, rubbing his hand gleefully. Jeremie nodded his head.

"Sir! Odd's not feeling good, we got to take him to the infirmary!" Jeremie raised his hand and shouted across the classroom. Everyone turned around and looked at Odd, who was 'vomiting' into his bag.

"Ughh.. I shouldn't have eaten five plates of spaghetti.." Odd lifted his head up and his cheeks puffed up again.

"Ah yes, go on," The teacher looked at Odd, disgusted. Jeremie, Aelita and Odd walked out of the classroom.

"Plan succeeded, once again! Hahahah!" Odd laughed.

"You make a great actor, Odd!" Aelita joked as the three of them ran to the factory.

* * *

"Scanner, transfer, virtulisation!"

The four Lyoko Warriors landed on the Mountain Sector.

"The activated tower is south-west of your direction," Jeremie's voice boomed across the sector as he virtulised the vehicles.

"Let's go. We have to hurry," Ulrich revved his Overbike and sped off, leaving the others behind.

"Whoa," Odd caught up to Ulrich and was now neck to neck, "Since when are you so excited about Lyoko battles? Normally you would be like, "Slow down, Odd. It's not like the tower's going to run away or something." Hahahaha!" Odd laughed as he mimicked Ulrich's voice.

"Hornets approaching, look out!" Yumi warned the boys. Ulrich and Odd separated and went off to destroy the Hornets. Slowly, one by one, their vehicles were destroyed and they were fighting on land.  
More and more monsters were sent in.

"Jeremie! Re-program the vehicles! There's too many of them!" Yumi commanded as she reflected the lasers with her fan.

"I'm sorry Yumi, but there's a bug. I'll try to fix it," Jeremie replied.

"I can't hold on much longer, Jeremie.. AH!" Yumi got shot and was devirtulised.

"Yumi, no! Laser arrow!" Odd shot a monster, but saw a laser flying towards him. "Ahh.. No, no, no, no, no, no!" Odd started to run  
away but ended up devirtulised in the end.

"Oh no! The Scyphozoa is after Aelita!" Jeremie screamed in horror.  
The Scyhphozoa was trapping Aelita in a corner, there was no way out.

"Ulrich..!" Aelita gasped as she dodged aside.

"Coming!" Ulrich supersprinted to where Aelita was. Ulrich threw his katana at the Scyphozoa but missed. The katana shot across the ledge and fell into the Digital Sea..

"AHH!" The Scyphozoa slowly approached Aelita.. It reached out the grab Aelita..

"No.. Aelita!" Jeremie shouted.

Out of the blue, Ulrich stood in front of Aelita in an attempt to shield her. The Scyphozoa caught Ulrich instead..

"Huh? What's this?" Jeremie stared at the screen.

"Ulrich?" Yumi and Odd exclaimed.

"It looks like the Scyphozoa is implanting something inside Ulrich.. But I don't get it. Why didn't the Scyphozoa catch Aelita instead? Isn't that XANA's goal?" Jeremie asked to nobody in particular.

"Maybe the Scyphozoa made a mistake. With so much blubber in his face, who knows what he's seeing!" Odd laughed at his joke.

"Yeah, whatever Odd. But what we should do now is to save Ulrich!" Yumi hurried Jeremie to do something. She was clearly worried about what XANA was doing to Ulrich.

"I can't.. There's nothing I can do here!" Jeremie shook his head and continued staring at the screen uselessly.

Ulrich was suspended in the air, with the Scyphozoa injecting something into him. Aelita was staring at the scene, horrified. She knew how painful it was to be captured by the Scyphozoa. Suddenly, she had a plan.

"Jeremie! I have an idea," Aelita said, "I can use my creativity powers and defeat the Scyphozoa,"

"Go ahead, Aelita. I believe in you,"

Aelita began focusing her powers. Slowly, a form of a huge rock could be seen above the Scyphozoa. The rock fell and crushed the Scyphozoa, destroying it.

"Where's Ulrich?" Yumi asked.

"He's right here, but he's unconscious. Don't worry, he'll wake up," Aelita assured Yumi.

"We'll wait for him to wake up first, we can't take the risk," Jeremie said.

"Unconscious for the second time," Odd shook his head, "Ulrich gonna feel very bad about this."

"Argh.. My head.." Ulrich got up slowly and rubbed his head, "What happened..?"

"Jeremie will explain to you when we get back." Aelita helped Ulrich up, "Jeremie, he's awake, you can materialize us now,"

The scanner door opened and Ulrich stumbled out. Odd caught him and helped him to his feet.

"How are you feeling?" Yumi asked.

"Fine. What happened anyways?"

"The Scyphozoa caught you and implanted something into you.. But I guess that Aelita stopped the process just in time," Jeremie explained.

"Lucky for you that Aelita knew what to do, or you might be one of XANA's slave! Wow, I can't imagine that day going against you as an enemy," Odd said, releasing Ulrich as he could stand on his own now.

"Guess you got a phobia of going against me ever since I won you at basketball at Gym class," Ulrich laughed.

"What happened at Gym?" Yumi asked, she did not know what happened as she is in a different class.  
"Odd and Ulrich were separated into different groups for a basketball match. The competition was very fierce even though it's just a game," Aelita paused to laugh, "Ulrich tackled Odd onto the floor to snatch the ball, and-"

"Alright! Story time over, ahahah.." Odd interrupted. He was clearly embarrassed about his defeat and didn't want to talk about it.

"Since everything's alright, do you guys want to stay over to help in decoding some files?" Jeremie asked.

"No, sorry. William asked me out.. I have to go, see ya!" Yumi said, shoving her mobile phone back into her pocket.

"See you!" Everyone waved, except for Ulrich. He stood there silently, watching Yumi take the elevator up. But he didn't feel jealously, unlike any other time. He could feel his new powers flowing through his veins. He smirked.

_Just wait, William. Just wait.. _


	12. Revenge

**~Ulrich's POV~**

_"What's my power?"_

"Superhuman Strength."

"How do I use it?"

"Focus your inner energy to your fist.. But it consumes a lot of energy, you will get tired very easily."

"Then why did you give me this power?"

"Stop questioning me, kid. You should be honored that I gave you a power."

"And you should be honored that I-"

"Hello~ Earth to Ulrich!"

I snapped out of my trance and stared blankly at Odd.

"You were staring into space.." Odd paused, "Thinking about Yumi? Hahaha!"

"Tch.." I was communicating with XANA, Odd. If only I could say that to him.. But there's no way out now, I just have to go forward. If Jeremie or Aelita finds out that I'm in alliance with XANA, they'll ban me for sure! But to tell the truth, I'm only partnering with XANA to fulfill my goal, and after that we'll be enemies once again.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Yumi placed her tray down and sat next to Aelita.

"Oh the usual stuffs, "Odd winked, "Ulrich's thinking about you,"

"Shut up, Odd," I snapped back. I glanced at Yumi and I could swear that I saw her blush for a moment. Why would she even blush? She's with William, isn't she? I looked out of the cafeteria window and saw William walking towards the forest..

"Hey, uh.. I got to go," I said.

"Does that mean that I can have your food?" Odd asked. I didn't say anything and just walked out of the cafeteria.

**~Normal POV~**

Ulrich stalked William to the forest and hid behind a tree. He observed William for a moment before appearing behind him.

"William," Ulrich said coolly. William jumped a little and turned around.

"Oh, it's you, Ulrich," William said, looking at Ulrich, "what brings you here.. How did you find me exactly?" William paused for a moment, before giving Ulrich a hard stare, "Look, Yumi and I are now officially dating. So don't you dare jinx our relationship."

"Are you sure about that? Yumi hasn't agree to your confession,"

"Either way, Stern. I have the upper hand now, so just leave the two of us alone."

"I'll leave you alone alright.."

"Good. So now just scram off and-" William eyes widened in shock. He began backing off, putting his arms in front of him in defense, "You.. What are you?!"

Ulrich smirked. Looking down at his fists, he could feel his new powers surging through his veins. "Now I can finally have my revenge." Ulrich charged at William and threw a punch at him. With no time to react, William was sent reeling backwards to a tree. The force was so powerful that the tree snapped into half and fell onto the forest floor.  
It was a miracle that William survived the attack with only a few scratches on his arms and legs. Groaning, he tried to stand up, but failed. Walking towards him, Ulrich was filled with confidence. He was winning it. He felt a power he never felt before. He could taste victory in every step he took. Destroying William was his grand prize.

"Pathetic," Ulrich spat, "I expected more from you, Dunbar." To be honest, Ulrich was a little shocked about his demeanor now, which was the total opposite of what it used to be, but shrugs it off. He lowered himself and picked William up by his collar, his new strength giving him the ease of doing so.

"Weak.. Pathetic.. Loser.. That is what you call me," Ulrich said with venom, his face inches away from William, "Now... I'll show you how it feels like!" Ulrich punched William in his stomach.

"Argh!" Blood spewed out from William's mouth. Ulrich laughed, seeing the state William was now satisfied him a little. As he was about to raise his fist for another blow, he heard someone calling him from behind.

"Ulrich? What.. are you doing?"

Glancing behind, he saw the rest of the gang. He dropped William onto the ground and turned around.

"Getting my revenge," He said, as if it was the simplest thing to say.

"But.. I mean, where did you.. How did you get that power? It's humanly impossible.." Jeremie asked. He paused for a moment, before shouting angrily at Ulrich, "You joined forces with XANA, didn't you?!"

"So what if I did?" Ulrich said defiantly. Jeremie wanted to beat Ulrich but Aelita held him back, shaking her head.

"Ulrich.. What's wrong with you?" Odd gasped, he didn't see Ulrich like this before.

"Nothing's wrong with me," Ulrich replied, admiring his power-glowing fist.

"Then why the hell are you beating William up?!" Odd shouted, pointing at the beaten William.

"As I've said before, I'm getting my revenge,"

"Ulrich.. Revenge doesn't solve anything.. Even if you've landed William in hospital, you still won't feel any satisfaction.." Odd tried to change his best friend's way of thinking.

"Since when are you so clever, Odd?" Ulrich laughed dryly, "And no. I'm not going to land William in hospital.. I'm going to _kill _him."

"Snap out of it, Ulrich!" Yumi finally said, "You're not the Ulrich I know.." Tears began to fall from Yumi's eyes, "That sweet, caring Ulrich.. Now you're just a complete jerk! Full of jealously and anger.."

_Yumi…_ _Yumi, I.. _This wasn't the way he thought it would turn out to be. He didn't want to see Yumi cry because of him. He didn't know that it would hurt Yumi that much.

The yellowish glow on Ulrich's fists began to fade.. Ulrich stared at his friends, then at William. He wanted things to return back to normal.

"I.. I'm sorry.. I- ARGH!" Ulrich screamed in agony. He fell to his knees and clutched his head in pain. His ears began to ring and his vision blurred…

_There's no backing out, kid._ A sinister voice said and laughed mockingly…


	13. The boy's no more

**~Normal POV~**

"Ulrich?" Yumi gasped as she edged closer to the brunette. Ulrich was clutching his throbbing head and screaming in agony.

"No! Stay.. away," Ulrich struggled, pushing Yumi away from him.

"Yumi! Bring William away from Ulrich!" Jeremie commanded. Nodding her head, Yumi dragged the injured William from Ulrich to where the gang stood. Yumi carefully leaned William onto a tree with Aelita's help.

"Should we run or not?" Odd glanced at Ulrich, then back at Jeremie, fear and concern shone in his eyes.

"We ru-"

"_No one's going anywhere." _

The boy stood up, laughing sinisterly. The gang was taken aback by the voice and stared at the boy.

"Ulrich? Is that… you?"

"_The boy's no more_," A distorted voice came out from Ulrich's lips.

"XANA…" Breathed Aelita as the familiar XANA symbol flickered in the eyes of Ulrich. A katana began materializing in the boy's hand; soon it was a full-steeled sword. The gang began taking steps backwards, distancing further away from the XANAfied Ulrich.

"Are we really going to leave William leaning against a tree?" Odd asked, looking at the direction of the unconscious William.

"The tree's gonna protect him, Odd!" Yumi replied.

"Oh, okay,"

"You idiot! Go picked him up and we'll run!" Jeremie shouted, irritated by Odd's jokes.

Suddenly, Ulrich charged forward, with his katana readied in front of him.

"Odd, watch out!" Aelita warned.

"Wha-" With no time to react, Odd was caught off guard. Completely vulnerable to be attacked, Odd stood there defenseless.

"Odd!" The steel blade was just inches in front of Odd's face. Three seconds was enough for the young boy to be cut into pieces. But the sword didn't move, instead it fell and clattered onto the floor. Odd opened his eyes and found himself face to face with Ulrich.

**~Ulrich's POV~**

"_I won't let you hurt him!" _I grabbed XANA's wrist, intervening his movement. I was mentally fighting XANA, for he possessed my body. I had no control of my own body. The dimension I was in now was supposedly my mind. It was pitch black- no, not pitch black, but _empty_. There was nothing here, but just XANA, me and a screen displaying the real world.

"Pathetic," XANA kicked me in the stomach and I was knocked onto the ground. XANA had taken in the form of me, with the exception of the eyes, which were dark red instead of the normal brown. I quickly turned to look at the screen. Fortunately, I had bought enough time for the gang to escape.. But I wonder how long I could last in this mental fight with XANA…

**~Normal POV~**

"I can't believe it.. XANA's possessed Ulrich.." Jeremie sighed, resting his head in his hands, "I always thought that Ulrich was smart enough to not trust XANA."

"What if that isn't XANA? Like, he was just acting and fooling us?" Odd asked.

"Get serious, Odd. How could Ulrich do such damage? It has to be XANA's doing," William said. As the gang had no choice but to let William use the scanners to be cured; his injury was much too serious, they had to tell everything about Lyoko and their secrets to him, thus making him part of the group.

The Lyoko Warriors were at the factory, discussing about what had happened to Ulrich. The factory was their 'bomb shelter', where they thought that it was safe to hide from XANA-Ulrich for the time being.

"If XANA's possessed Ulrich, then there must be an activated tower," Aelita suggested.

"But I can't find any activated tower on Lyoko.." Jeremie said, shaking his head in despair.

"We can't be 100% sure, Jeremie. The only way to find out is to go to Lyoko,"

"Alright then," Left with no choice, Jeremie began starting up the virtualization process.

* * *

"Virtulisation!"

Odd, Aelita, Yumi and William was virtualized onto Lyoko.

"Wow! It's just like a video game!" William gasped, looking around. He carried a huge sword, a zweilhander to be exact, "No weapons? What do you guys fight with? Your hands?" William asked, indicating at the trio's empty handed hands.

"Nope. With laser arrows!"

"What kind of lame name is that?" William laughed, but stopped when an arrow shot past his cheeks.

"Gotcha!"

"Alright, enough fun. I'll send in your vehicles. William, you'll use Ulrich's Overbike for now," Jeremie's voice boomed across the sector. "Hey wait! What's that?" Jeremie leaned forward and pushed his spectacles up, "Guys, something- Or someone is approaching you."

"I got a bad feeling about this, Jeremie," Yumi said, inspecting the area around them… Suddenly, she spotted someone running towards them at full speed. Her eyes widen at the scene ahead of her…

* * *

**(Author's notes)**

I just want to thank you guys for all the support you've given me on this fanfiction. I really appreciate it, and I got 19 reviews on this story for now! THANK YOU VERY MUCH! And I have to apologise for not keeping my promise, I've said in the previous chapter that I'll update very frequently.. But school started in a _FLASH_ and now, I'm back in school with lots of homework.. But I'll try as much as I can to update, don't worry, this story will be completed. I swear.


	14. Playing with trust

**~Normal POV~**

"Get ready guys,"

The four warriors readied their weapons in front of them, bracing themselves for the upcoming fight. Just meters away, the boy stopped.

"I'll send you flying across the sector!" Odd shouted as he fired a laser arrow. The boy merely dodged the arrow and stood the gaping at Odd.

"Odd! Are you out of your mind? It's me," The boy spread out his arms in a welcoming brace.

"Like I will believe you, 'Ulrich'!"

Ulrich was astonished by what his best friend said. He didn't expect his trust with his friends to be broken so.. e_asily_.

"Odd.. Look, it's really me. I broke free of XANA's control," Ulrich took a step forward but halted as Aelita shot an Energy Field in front of his foot. Ulrich just can't comprehend why his friends thought that he was still under the control of XANA. His virtual form still looked the same- his yellow samurai outfit, his katana on his waist and his headband.

"No, Aelita!" Yumi stopped Aelita from shooting another Energy Field, "I'll talk to him," She reassured. Although her heart was thumping wildly against her chest, she tried to remain calm. "If you're the real Ulrich.. Then answer me this- What is our friendship keychain?"

Everyone remained silent until Ulrich spoke.

"Mine's a katana.. While yours is a black flower. We got it from the shop near our school," He replied with ease.

"Ulrich.. It's really you," Yumi smiled; glad to see her friend once again. Walking towards Ulrich, Yumi can't wait to hug him, embracing him in her warmth of returning back.  
Yumi stood in front of Ulrich, holding his hand in indescribable happiness. "I'm glad to see you too.. Yumi," Ulrich smirked.  
Yumi's eyes widened with terror.

"Yumi!" Odd, Aelita and William shouted. Yumi was flung across the sector, landing just centimeters in front of the edge. William dashed towards her and helped her.

"I knew we shouldn't have trusted you! Playing with our trust with Ulrich.. XANA, you're one big bastard!" For once, Odd was really angry. He rapidly shot laser arrows at 'Ulrich', who dodged the arrows easily. The XANAfied Ulrich laughed mockingly as he devirtualized Odd, stabbing him in the chest within a flash.

"Foolish children. I'm just merely getting my revenge, that's all," XANA spoke through Ulrich.

"But why Ulrich?" Aelita asked, she peered over her shoulders to check on Yumi. Fortunately, she hadn't fall into the Digital Sea, but was unconscious at the moment, with William by her side of course.

"It's common sense to possess the strongest warrior here, and since Ulrich is loyal and always protecting all of you, I should toy with your feelings," XANA paused, admiring the shocked expression on Aelita's face, "And that Ulrich was stupid enough to trust me, just to gain power and to kill William.." XANA paused once more and looked at William placing Yumi on his lap, "Out of jealously. As Ulrich has lots of negative feelings locked inside his heart.. I found it interesting and useful to use all these feelings, it would make him powerful.. and _unstoppable_,"

"You're inhuman!" Aelita fired an Energy Field at XANA, but missed.

"Tch. Pathetic," XANA spat and devirtualised Aelita. XANA fixed his gaze onto William and Yumi. Yumi who regain her consciousness, stood up and opened her fan, determined to defeat the XANAfied Ulrich and bring him back to Earth- properly.

"Supersprint," XANA-Ulrich sprinted to where the duo was and side kicked William, having twenty life points deducted.

"William, Yumi! Retreat! Don't take any chances!" Jeremie commanded, seeing that it was useless now to fight Ulrich. William nodded and ran ahead with Yumi. But unfortunately, Yumi had little time to react to Ulrich's next move.

Ulrich shoved Yumi, causing her to fall backwards. This time, Yumi was not so lucky. She toppled over and landed behind the edge of the sector. Instinctively she shot our her hand and clung on to the edge, dangling above the digital sea.

Yumi winced as she looked down, one wrong move and it will be all over for her. She then glanced up, seeing the XANA-fied Ulrich gazing down at her. She felt a cold sensation washing over her body as she stared into the dark red eyes of Ulrich, which were once brown before all this had happened…****

  
_Flash!_

"Gotcha," Ulrich smiled as he got hold of Yumi's wrist, "Happy to see me?"

"I sure am," Yumi returned his smile and stared gratefully at him. Yumi was fortunate that Ulrich saved her just in time before she falls into the Digital Sea.

"Hurry Jeremie, I can't hold her for long," Yumi was dangling above the Digital Sea, with only Ulrich as her 'rope'. "Uh.. Yumi," Ulrich started, avoiding Yumi's eyes as he talked, "What do you think of my poem for Sissi?"

"Ulrich, this is really not the time," Yumi fumed, recalling the poem that Ulrich recited for Sissi out of jealously.

"Because.." Ulrich's gaze softened, "I actually wrote it for you,"

Flash!

Those caring eyes.. Were now filled with killing intent. She felt her fingers slowly losing grip on the edge.. Yumi looked up at Ulrich with sadness, she longed for his return. She dearly missed his company. She closed her eyes, that evil grin on Ulrich's face was still plastered onto her mind.. Suddenly, she heard a familiar voice calling out her name.

"Yumi, no!"


	15. Temporary control

**~Ulrich's POV~**

I was chained up. My wrist was bounded by a metal chain which coils around a wall. No matter how hard I try to free myself, I just can't get free. XANA had done it this time. With no movement, I cannot stop XANA from killing my friends- especially Yumi. I gritted my teeth as I saw her being flung over the edge.

"XANA!" I shouted, tugging at the chain once more, "Leave Yumi alone! I'm the one you're after.." XANA spun around and looked at me, laughing.

"You're just my slave, so shut the hell up,"

I glared at XANA as I thought of a plan. _Maybe if I bite the chain.. _Seriously no! My teeth will break into pieces if I do so! I sighed. It's useless. There's nothing I could do.. XANA has taken over my body and.. _That's it! _XANA has only taken control of my _body_.. And what controls the body is the brain, the _mind_. Since I've full control of my mind, it means that I have control over my body as well! I just have to figure out a way to do that..

_Meditate_. Right. I can try to temporarily break XANA's control over my body using meditation. But since XANA's stronger than me.. I have no idea how long I can last.. I glanced hurriedly at the screen; Yumi was above the Digital Sea. I have no time to lose. I quickly got into a meditation position and closed my eyes. I had meditated a lot of times before, so this was easy for me.

Clearing my mind, I focused all of my inner energy to my 'body'. I felt something warm tingling inside my body. Summoning all of my strength, I pushed that 'force' out…

My eyes shot wide open. I was greeted by the sight of the Ice Sector in Lyoko. I did it! I looked down and saw Yumi's fingers slowly losing grip on the edge. I tried to move my arm but it felt numb. Oh no.. Had I forgotten how to move my body?! My heart pounded rapidly against my chest as I stood there uselessly, staring at Yumi. Suddenly, a part of the edge crumbled and plunged down with Yumi..

**~Normal POV~**

Yumi screamed as she was falling head first into the Digital Sea. She tried to grab onto the side of the sector but she was falling way too fast..

"Yumi, no!" She heard someone call out her name. Then, she saw a streak of yellow heading towards her. It was Ulrich. Yumi didn't know whether to cry or to smile. It could either be the real Ulrich who was here to save her, or the XANAfied Ulrich who was going to shove her faster into her doom.

"Supersprint!" Ulrich shouted as he desperately tried gaining speed to catch up with the falling Yumi. Using his Lyoko power, Ulrich shot towards Yumi and grabbed hold of her. In one swift movement, he unsheathed his Katana with his right hand and stabbed it into the side of the Ice Sector. The duo slowly came into a halt.

Ulrich heaved a sigh of relief. They were just a few meters above the Digital Sea. Turning to face Yumi, Ulrich smiled.

"You okay, Yumi?" The brunette asked with genuine concern, his eyes scanning Yumi's. Yumi nodded, she was now sure that it was the real Ulrich.

"How did you break free?" Yumi blurted out.

"Meditation," Ulrich winked, "Although I'm not sure how long it'll last against XANA…"

"What do you mean?"

"He's still inside of me.. I'm only temporarily gaining control of my body," Ulrich replied, tightening his grip on his katana handle.

"Then how do we free you from XANA's control?" Yumi was anxious to free Ulrich, saving him from his suffering.

"By deactivating the tower," Jeremie's voice was heard.

"Jeremie! You're back!" Yumi exclaimed.

"Yes, I was finding out how to save Ulrich, and it turns out that XANA is controlling Ulrich using a tower. So by deacti-"

"Okay, we get it Jeremie," Ulrich interrupted, "I can't hold Yumi for long now.. So would you _please_ materialize her?" Ulrich was relieved that his vertigo doesn't affect him on Lyoko, otherwise he wouldn't know what their outcome would be.

"Uh.. Sure. In a second," Jeremie began starting up the materialization process. On Lyoko, Yumi began to materialize. Neither of them spoke a word, until Yumi said "Good luck, Ulrich."

Ulrich smiled. His final battle now was with XANA. After Yumi had materialized completely, he began climbing up. Soon, he reached the top and jumped over. He stood up and came face to face with William. William instantly pointed his zweilhander at Ulrich's throat and threatened, "Don't you dare move an inch!"

Narrowing his eyes, Ulrich glared at William. The both of them had a staring competition, until Jeremie broke the tense growing between the two boys.

"William, don't worry. Ulrich's with us now," William glared at Ulrich for a while before lowering his zweilhander. "You two, get to the tower as quickly as possible- and don't let any of XANA monsters devirtualise you!"

"But who's going to deactivate the tower? Aelita's devirtualised.." Willim questioned.

"Ulrich's going to do the job," Jeremie replied, much to Ulrich's and William's surprise.

"What? How am I going to do that? I'm not trained by Aelita you know!" Ulrich nearly screamed.

"Don't worry, I'm sure even Odd can do it," Odd nudged Jeremie when he heard what he said, "I've implanted a duplicate of Aelita's digital code into you, Ulrich. With this, you can deactivate the tower."

"But why me? Can't William do it?"

"Unfortunately, no. Since XANA's in you, the only way is for you to deactivate the tower personally, to break his control once and for all."

"Alright then, Jeremie.." Ulrich replied hesitantly, he was unsure if he could do it.

"Okay guys, we have no time to lose now. We won't know when XANA will regain strength again and break free of Ulrich's control. So hurry up and head towards the tower, the direction is South, South-East."

Nodding their heads, Ulrich and William dashed towards the tower with a red glow. For once, the two rivals spoke nothing as they headed towards their destination in silence. Ulrich took a deep breath as he came closer to the tower.

_I just hope.. that everything will go smoothly…_


	16. Ulrich's more than my best friend

**~Normal POV~**

"Four Tarantulas ahead! Watch out!" The four monsters appeared from behind the activated tower; bring the two warriors to a halt. "Don't let Ulrich get devirtualised, William," Jeremie warned once more.

"Yeah I got you," William charged his zweihander and fired at a Tarantula, devirtualising it. Seeing its comrade down, the other three began firing at William and Ulrich. The two boys blocked the lasers with their swords and advanced slowly towards the monsters.

"Behind you!"

"Wha-" Ulrich was shot in his arm and was knocked off his feet.

"Jeremie, we're surrounded!" William looked around him, they were indeed surrounded. Ulrich got to his feet but was knocked off once again.

"Ulrich, be careful! Only ten life points left!" Jeremie shouted hysterically. Suddenly, Jeremie realized XANA's plan and his eyes widened. "He's trying to kill us!"

"What?" The Lyoko Warriors on Earth looked at Jeremie dumbfounded.

"He's trying to bring Ulrich back to Earth, and possess him so that he'll kill us all!" Everyone gasped in horror.

"Then what do you want us to do?" William asked, at the same time destroying a monster. Ulrich was back on his feet and destroying monsters as well. Gradually, the number decreased and became three on two.

"Protect Ulrich at all costs," Jeremie replied, as if it was the most obvious answer. William headed Jeremie's command and stood in front of Ulrich, his zweihander up in defense.

"Hey! I don't need your protection," Ulrich shoved William away and supersprinted towards a monster, destroying it. "See?" Ulrich smirked. William simply shrugged and charged his zweihander, swinging it and destroying a monster as well.

"Who's boss now?" The two rivals glared at each other.

"What are they doing?!" Yumi shouted as she saw the two boy's act on the computer screen.

"Playing who has the biggest sword," Odd jokingly replied.

Suddenly, a laser shot past the two boys like an arrow. Startled, they moved away and focused on the monster. In an attempt to impress William again, Ulrich dashed towards the monster. Just as he was about to shove his katana into the target, a laser was fired and it shot dead center in Ulrich's chest.

"No!" Jeremie shouted as Ulrich began to devirtualise.

"Idiot.." William face palmed, "Jeremie, I guess you have to materialize me now,"

Meanwhile in the Scanner Room, Ulrich fell out of a scanner, clutching his head in agony. Ulrich was fighting a mental battle with XANA- either he will lose and put his friends in danger, or win the battle and hold on until the next day where he could return to Lyoko to deactivate the tower. Unfortunately, Ulrich growled and his eyes opened; showing the symbol of XANA… He lost the battle and XANA had taken over his body once again.. The XANAfied Ulrich walked towards the elevator, and began his plan to destroy the Lyoko Warriors..

**~Yumi's POV~**

"Ulrich did well.. He's a brave warrior.." Jeremie said softly and he looked at the elevator door, bracing himself for a fight to death.

"Yeah.." Odd agreed, steadying himself into a fighting stance. The elevator doors opened and there stood a XANA-fied Ulrich, smirking at his future victory. _Ulrich… _

_ Flash!_

"I'll protect you no matter what, Yumi.. I promise.."

Flash!

"Ulrich.. Now _I'm_ going to save you," I muttered.

"Charge!" William appeared from behind us and dashed towards Ulrich, his fists clenched, ready to execute a punch. Taking that as a signal, Odd and I followed behind William. Suddenly, Ulrich shot electric fields at us. We barely dodge them but the impact was strong enough to send us reeling backwards. Jeremie and Aelita rushed forward and helped us up. Wiping blood from a spilt lip, Odd staggered forward, pushing Aelita away.

"What are you doing?! Do you want to get killed, Odd?!" Jeremie shouted hysterically. Odd stopped walking and looked at Ulrich, then turned around and fixed a stone hard stare at Jeremie.

"Ulrich's my best friend. I am ready to sacrifice my life for him, so long as it'll free him from XANA!" Equally shocked by Odd's sudden change of attitude, we stood there gaping at him. We never seen Odd so serious before ever since we met him, but I have to agree that he has a point. It was then we noticed a change- Ulrich started advancing towards us. We backed away slowly, before charging towards him once again. But however we try, whatever tactic we use, we always get repelled. We even resorted to let Aelita and Jeremie fight Ulrich, though it was of no use.. William and Aelita were knocked unconscious; William was hit on his head with a pipe and Aelita was zapped by an electric field.

But we were no better, though conscious, Jeremie and Odd suffered a sprained ankle and bruised arm while the side of my head was throbbing badly- blood trickled down from the side as I was struck on the temple with a kick from Ulrich. My body screamed to give up but I knew I can't.. The fate of Ulrich is in our hands.. _The body will do what the mind achieves._ I recalled the saying Jim told us in our Pencak Silat training. Wincing from the pain, I got up in a final attempt. As I stared deep into Ulrich's eyes, flashbacks of our sweet memories flooded my mind.. I smiled faintly, longing the real Ulrich's return. Suddenly, an idea struck me. _Ulrich broke XANA's control using his feelings.. What if… _ I looked into Ulrich's eyes once more, it bore deep hatred and anger.. I assume that the real Ulrich was either unconscious in his mind, or powerless under XANA's control.. But if I.. That's it!

"Ulrich! I know you're in there, somewhere.. Don't you remember how happy we are together?" I said in an attempt to bring Ulrich's memories back, but the XANA-fied Ulrich showed no emotions or change in expression- still hard as ever. I bit my lower lip as I wrecked my brains for another way.

"Yumi.. It's not going to work the way," Jeremie said, already losing hope, "We're only human.. And this is our final mission.."

"No Jeremie.. This isn't our final mission," I took small steps towards Ulrich.

"What are you doing?! You're just as reckless as Odd!"

"No, I'm just as determined as him.. Ulrich's more than my best friend.. He's like my brother.. My.. other half," I choked back tears as I said those words.. The XANA-fied Ulrich growled in anger as he saw me advancing towards him, getting into a fighting stance. I simply waved it away, knowing that somehow, the real Ulrich is in there and that was just XANA. Abruptly, Ulrich dashed at me.

"Yumi!" I heard Odd and Jeremie shout in alarm. But I was ready. In the last moment, I extended my arms and embraced Ulrich. The XANA-fied Ulrich was equally shocked by the sudden change of plan. I closed my eyes as I appreciated this possible last moment of my life.

"Come back to us, Ulrich…" I whispered into his ears as I prayed silently for him to come back. Tears flowed down my eyes and I squeezed him closer to my chest. Knowing that if XANA decided to end my life, I will feel the hard rock-like fist punching deep into my ribs.. But what I expected was the total opposite. I felt arms slowly wrapping itself onto my waist. I opened my eyes.. and saw Ulrich hugging me.

"Ulrich.. Is that really.. you..?"

"Yes, Yumi.. I'm back," Ulrich smiled sweetly back at me. I couldn't believe my eyes. Is Ulrich really… Back?


	17. That night End

**~Normal POV~**

"But how did you.."

"XANA ran out of power," Ulrich shrugged, "He couldn't go on a long term attack".

"You're lying. I won't fall into your trap again, XANA!" Yumi shoved Ulrich away. Though she was not a hundred percent sure if she's looking at the _real _Ulrich or the _XANAfied_ Ulrich. Ulrich narrowed his eyes as he advanced towards Yumi. Yumi was taken aback and backed away. _He's going to kill me…_

But instead of grabbing her neck and choking the life out of her, Ulrich just walked past her and began typing some things into the Super Computer.

"What are you doing?!"

"Saving my friends' life."

"Huh?" Yumi blurted out. She then realized that William, Aelita, Odd, Jeremie and even herself was badly injured. Yumi knew that this was the _real _Ulrich. Watching him press the 'enter' key on the keyboard, she readied herself for a jump back in time.

"Return to the past now," Ulrich whispered as a huge beam of light exploded from beside him and engulfed them…

* * *

"Wake up sleepy heads!" Yumi called out as she laughed, seeing her four friends asleep on Odd's and Ulrich's bed.

"Ngh.. Mummy?" Odd rubbed his eyes as he sat up.

"Pfft.. Odd, I am your father," Ulrich laughed at his joke.

"Oh? Does that mean that you and Yumi are married?" Jeremie asked, winking at Aelita.

"W-what?" Ulrich realized that his joke has backfired and blushed, rubbing his neck and avoiding Yumi's gaze.

After all the Lyoko Warriors had fully woken up, Jeremie spoke.

"You're sure XANA has gotten out of your body?"

"Yes. I saw it with my own eyes,"

"This is the first time someone has been aware of what's happening while XANA controls his body.." Aelita muttered.

"Ulrich's one of the strongest here, both mind and body, so that should explain it," William said.

"Wow! Now _that's_ what you don't hear every day!" Odd exclaimed, playfully punching Ulrich's shoulder.

"Why thank you," Ulrich glared at William, taking what he said as sarcasm.

"Hey. Why don't you-"

"Stop!" Jeremie, Aelita and Yumi demanded at the same time. The two boys stopped glaring at each other and kept quiet. _They just can't stop fighting each other, can they? _Yumi sighed. _Boys.._ Aelita shook her head. There was a long silence before Ulrich spoke.

"No, it wasn't because of my strong mind.. It was because all of you helped me."

"Huh?" All of them said at the same time.

"You guys triggered my feelings when XANA had locked them all when he possessed me. It was because of you; I snapped out of my unconsciousness and fought back. But even though I didn't win the fight between me and XANA.." Ulrich looked a little ashamed when he said that, but nonetheless continued, "You guys didn't lose hope in saving me and continued to fight 'me'. I feel so glad to have true friends like you.. You guys are so.." Ulrich paused, wrecking his brain for the perfect word to use.

"Loving?" Odd broke the silence.

"Yeah, that's it," Ulrich smiled as he saw his friend burst into laughter. "I'm not joking! You guys are my second family.. Even more loving then my _actual_ family.."

"Even William?"

"Odd! Shh..!" Jeremie snapped at Odd. Ulrich looked at William and nodded his head.

"Yeah, even William." Ulrich gave William a smirk, "Although a little competitive.. He turned out to be a great person." Yumi blushed a little when she heard 'competitive', she knew that it mean the competition between who will win her heart. Soon, the bell rang at the Lyoko Warrior disbanded.

"We got Gym class, see you!" Aelita waved goodbye at William and Yumi as they went for their respective classes.

* * *

Ulrich sat at the usual tree where he always goes to. Looking up at the dark night sky, with only the full moon to light up the forest, he smiled. It felt good to have his own body back; and to know that he has true friends.

"Need company?" Ulrich looked up and saw a familiar face.

"Y-Yumi?! Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be at home?" Startled, Ulrich got up to his feet immediately.

"Haha chill, sit down," The two of them sat under the tree and looked at each other.

"You haven't told me why you're here," Ulrich asked, puzzled that Yumi was right beside him. It was already nine at night and she was supposed to be at home, her parents don't allow her to go out at this time of day- unless there's a XANA attack where she has to sneak out of her room.

"I told my parents that I forgotten something," Yumi winked at Ulrich. Blushing heavily, Ulrich chuckled. "And what are _you_ doing here?"

"Thinking about what had happened."

"You.. Don't remember what I said, do you?" Yumi blushed as she recalled what she told to Jeremie during the fight. _"Ulrich's more than my best friend.. He's like my brother.. My.. Other half"…_

"What did you say?" Ulrich tilted his head to one side as he queried. Yumi heaved a sigh of relief. "Anyways.. I have something to tell you, Yumi.."

"What is it?" Yumi's heart pounded when she heard that.

"I.. I love you.." Ulrich quickly said and looked away, his face as red as a beetroot.

"Oh Ulrich.. You're so kawaii!" Yumi giggled. Suddenly, there was a huge gush of wind and Yumi suddenly lost balance and fell on top of Ulrich. Stunned, the two teenagers looked at each other, breathing heavily.

"Y-Y-Yumi!" Ulrich gasped as he looked into the Japanese's eyes. Their faces were just inches away from each other's. His heart beat rapidly. There was something inside of him that told him to do something. _ This is your chance.. Do it! _Ulrich took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He felt warm lips against his. After their lips had parted, they opened their eyes and blushed once again.

"Uh.. I'm sor-"

"I love you too, Ulrich," Yumi embraced Ulrich in a big hug.. That night was the best night known to both Ulrich and Yumi…

From afar, William stood behind a tree observing the two teenagers. He smiled to himself and closed his eyes.

"I'm glad that the female lead chose the male lead," He whispered...

_**~The End~**_


End file.
